KATHMANDU, Oct 27: With the date of local elections approaching, political parties have turned their attention towards voters, and leaders have now been visiting districts in order to woo them.
Nepali Congress 2.0 President Gagan Kumar Thapa has said the party’s statute provides for selecting candidates for the upcoming local elections through digital voting by party members. Speaking at a party programme in Syangja on Monday, Thapa said the provision would now be implemented in practice.
“Even after preparing the list, we will hold discussions at different levels before finalising the candidates,” he said. “We need to settle the candidate selection process two or three months in advance.”
While Thapa has pledged to select local election candidates through votes cast by party leaders and cadres, Nepali Congress 2.0, under his leadership, began preparations several months ago. A party office bearer said a team was working from a separate office outside the central party headquarters to prepare candidate lists for all local units. The selection process is being handled by a mechanism under the party’s election bureau.
“Various procedures are followed for public consumption,” the office bearer said. “For the past three or four months, we have been assessing the situation in each local unit and deciding who should be fielded as a candidate. The party will finalise its candidates for mayor and deputy mayor based on those assessments.”
'I will work as people's servant, not their master'
The office bearer also claimed that assurances given to party leaders while managing competing interests during the special general convention and subsequent general convention would influence candidate selection.
Nepali Congress 2.0, which held its general convention in the third week of Asoj, is scheduled to administer the oath of office to its office bearers and central committee members on Thursday. The central committee meeting that follows is expected to focus on the local elections and prepare for a month-long public outreach campaign in Mangsir.
The Nepali Congress remains divided into two factions amid an internal dispute. The faction led by Thapa and younger leaders has completed its general convention, while another faction, including Sher Bahadur Deuba, is holding conventions at lower levels ahead of a general convention planned for Mangsir.
If the government holds local elections in Falgun or Baisakh under the current circumstances, the party is likely to contest as two separate factions. The dispute over which faction represents the legitimate Nepali Congress remains pending at the Supreme Court. Other political parties have also begun preparations for the local elections.
As the government moves ahead with preparations for elections in Falgun, the ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has stepped up its outreach to voters. Before Dashain, it launched the “Hami Aaudaichhau” (We Are Coming) campaign to connect with the public. The party is also running a “Candidate Club” to identify potential candidates for local elections. It plans to select candidates through this initiative and has used festivals as an opportunity to engage with voters.
The Nepali Communist Party (NCP) has also launched a campaign focused on the local elections. The party has decided to reach out to the public under its “National Awakening Campaign” from Kartik 7 to Mangsir 25.
“The campaign aims to expand and strengthen the organisation, defend national independence, protect democracy and people's rights, address livelihood problems, transform the party and lay the foundation for building socialism,” said a statement issued by party coordinator Pushpa Kamal Dahal.
The party said central leaders would lead the campaign in villages, wards and neighbourhoods. It plans to hold direct discussions with farmers, workers, labourers, youths, students, women, Dalits, Indigenous nationalities, Madhesis, Tharus, minority communities, persons with disabilities, people from underdeveloped regions, intellectuals, teachers, government employees, entrepreneurs and businesspeople.
The CPN UML has also decided to hold a national gathering in the first week of Mangsir to mobilise its party organisation. As part of its local election preparations, it plans to hold ward conventions on Mangsir 26 and local unit conventions on Poush 4, followed by provincial level gatherings.
With the government beginning preparations for local elections, the UML is planning to use these conventions and gatherings to activate its organisation and develop an election mobilisation strategy.
Madhes based political parties have also stepped up their activities, forming different groups in an effort to regain their former influence. Groups including Hunkar Madhes have become active.
